Construction of safes, safe cabinets, and similar structures



1,547,720 D. H. BELLAMORE CONSTRUCTION OF SAFES, SAFE CABINETS, ANDSIMILAR STRUCTURES Filed-June v, 1923 2 h et -Shut 2 July 28, 19.25.

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9 M -I- I}--- .lill I .l..||||- INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented July 28,1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID E. BELLAMORE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE MOSLER SAFE COI-PANY, OF HAMILTON, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

CONSTRUCTION OF SAFES, SAFE CABINETS, AND SIMILAR STRUCTURES.

Application filed June 7, 1928. Serial No. 643,885.

T0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID H. BELLAMORE, a citizen of the United States,residing in the borough of Manhattan, city, county, and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Constructionof Safes, Safe Cabinets, and Similar Structures, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to the construction of safes, safe cabinets andsimilar structures.

The metallic parts usually employed for the construction of safes, safecabinets and similar structures lose structural strength and becomewarped when subjected to intense heat, and in proportion to the durationof such heat. Thus, when the metallic parts of the structure are of ironthey will lose approximately 7 0 per cent of their structural strengthwhen heated to 'a temperature of about 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Also,under intense heat, the fillings usually employed for such structureslose structural strength and are apt to disintegrate and split open, andthis is accelerated and accentuated by the tortional forces set up bythe warping of the safe walls under the influence of the heat. When insuch condition, the resistance of the structure to impact shocks andcrushing strains (such as are apt to be set up by the falling of thestructure or by the falling of weighty objects thereon) is usuallylessened to such an extent that such shocks and strains disrupt thestructure and destroy its structural unity and resistance to penetrationby heat and fire.

The principal object of my invention is to provide a construction ofsafe, safe cabinet and similar structures, which will stand up undersuch conditions and under such strains, which the usual construction isunable to resist. Another object of my invention is to provide aconstruction having increased structural strength and offering increasedresistance to distortional forces set up therein or applied thereto.Another object of this invention is to provide a construction which willp05 sass great structural strength and will be highly resistant totortional and crushing strains when subjected to intense heat, and aconstruction which will maintain such strength and resistance whilesubjected to intense heat for a protracted period of time. A furtherobject of my invention is to provide a structure of the above characterin which the various elements. and parts are so inter-related andinter-connected that the structural strength of the structure as a wholeis developed to its maximum, and wherein the various structural partsand elements mutually reenforce and brace each other. Other objects willbe in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

In accordance with my invention, the construction comprises an outermetallic box or shell, such as the outer walls of a safe, a. metallicinner box or shell spaced from said outer shell, such asthe inner wallsof a safe, an insulating filling in the space betweensaid shells, andmembers, preferably embedded in the filling, so as to be protectedthereby, and joined thereto and also to the outer and inner shells,whereby all these various elements and parts of the structure arebrought into such mutual inter-connection that a maximumof structuralstrength is developed in the structure as a whole, and in such a waythat the entire structural strength of the inner shell functions toreenforce and to brace the filling and the outer shell, and the entirestructural strength of the outer shell functions to reenforce and tobrace the filling and the inner shell, and the.

the various parts of both shells are brought into coaction to resist anydistortional effects of the strain, irrespective of the place where suchstrain is set up or applied. If reenforced filling is present betweenthe shells, said members are embedded therein to join the structuralstrength of such filling to the inner and outer shells.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combination of elements and arrangement of pa ts which will beexemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope ofthe application of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In order that a clearer understanding of my invention may be had,attention is hereby directed to the accompanying drawings, forming apart of this application and illustrating one possible embodiment of myinvention. Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 is a sectional view of afragmentary portion of a structure embodying my invention, and is takenon the line 11 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the same lookingfrom the opposite direction, and is taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1; andincludes another fragmentary portion of the structure showing areenforcing member mounted in a location removed from the corners of thestructure; Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a strain resisting anddistributing reenforcing member, and is taken on the line 33 of Fi 2;and Fig. e is a sectional view of a agmentary portion of a. structurehaving reenforced filling and reenforcing and strengthening membersassociated therewith. Similar reference characters refer to similarparts throughout the several views of the drawings.

The drawings are merely illustrative and are not to be considered asbeing accurate either as to proportion of parts or as to any particularscale.

Referring to the drawings there is shown a fragment of a safe, safecabinet or other structure having outer top wall 1, outer rear wall 2,and outer side walls 3 and 4, forming an outer box or shell, and innertop wall 5, inner rear wall 6, and inner side wall 7, forming an innerbox or shell, the inner box being spaced from the outer box. Adjacentouter walls are held together by angle irons 8, and adjacent inner wallsare held together by an le irons 9. Such is a usual construction 0safes, safe cabinets or the like, the walls being usually metallic.

For use in connection with structures so constituted I provide one ormore members such as 10, 11, 12 and 13, which may be called braces, eachof which is adapted for attachment to both the said outer shell andinner shell so as to extend across the space between the shells and toact as reenforcing and strengthening means and as strain resisting anddistributing means for said shells and the parts thereof, andconsequently for the entire structure. Said members are preferably soconstructed that they are sturdy and highly resistant to strain. Each ofthese members or braces may consist of a metallic plate or strip,preferably slightly curved in transverse cross-section, to increaseresistance to distortion or breakage under strain, and may be perforatedat suitable places, such as 14, for the sake of eliminating superfluousweight and for securing a better bond with the filling. One end, theinner end 15, of each brace is adapted to fit against and to be securelyattached to the inner shell, prefedge of angle irons 9 of the innershell The body of each brace member extends from its inner end 15 at anobtuse angle, and the outer end of each brace is preforably providedwith two tabs or projections 16 and 17, disposed at appropriate anglesto each other, and adapted to fit against, and to be welded or otherwiseto be socurely attached to the inner surface of two different walls ofthe outer shell, at or near the meeting edge of such two walls.Obviously, if the inner or outer shell walls meet at other than rightangles the inner and outer ends of the braces will be modifiedaccordingly. Obviously, also, such brace members may be placed at anysuitable points in the structure. They may be placed at one or more ofthe corners of the inner shell, at any points along one or more of itsedges between the corners, as well as at other places. If three suchbraces are mounted at the same corner of the inner shell, and each braceis attached to two different sides of the shell at said corner, thethree braces will form an equilateral tripod extending to the outershell, and the outer end of each brace may be welded or otherwisesecured to two different walls of the outer shell, thus forming at suchcorner a very strong reenforcement and brace, which not only is itselfhighly resistant to strain, but also so transmits and distributesstrains and distortional forces to and among the various parts of theouter and inner shells that all such parts are brought into mutualco-action to reenforce each other and to resist such strains and forces.Each single brace along an edge of the inner shell, whether at a cornerthereof or removed therefrom, may be joined to two different walls ofthe inner shell and to two different walls of the outer shell, or eachsuch brace may be joined only to a single wall of either of the shellsand to either one or two walls of the other shell. In any event eachsuch brace joins the inner and outer shells together in such manner thatthe structural strength of both shells are utilized and brought intoco-action to resis and oppose mutually any strains or other distortionalforces set up in or applied to the structure. If a filling, shown at 18,Fig. 4, is present between the inner and outer shells, the brace membersmay be so incorporated therein that they will serve to tie such fillingto the inner and outer shells, thereby joining the structural strengthof the filling to the shells and to the braces, and increasin the strainresistance and strength of t e structure. If the filling is reenforced,as at '19, Fig. 4, the structure is even stronger and more resistant tostrains.

As shown in the drawing, end 15 of member lies against and is Welded tothe two surfaces of angle iron 9 which connects inner walls 5 and 7,while at the outer end of member 10, tab 16 is welded to outer wall 3and tab 17 is welded to outer wall 1. End of member 11 lies upon and iswelded to angle iron 9, which connects adjacent inner walls 5 and 6,while tab 16 of member 11 is welded to outer wall 2 and tab 17 of thismember is welded to outer wall 1. The end 15 of member 12 lies againstand is welded to angle member 9, which connects adjacent inner walls 6and 7 while at the outer end of member 12 tab 16 lies a ainst and iswelded to outer wall 2, and ta 17 lies against and is welded to outerwall 3. The brace 13, which is illustrated as being situated on theinner shell at a place removed from a corner thereof, has its angleshapedinner end secured to the two surfaces of angle member 9 whichconnects walls 5 and 7, and has tab 16 of its outer end secured to outershell wall 1 and its other tab 17 is adapted to be secured to outershell wall 3.

Although the above description refers to a'single corner portion of astructure, it is preferable that the construction be duplipresent at thefront, although the corner" construction described may be repeated atthe front corners of the structure, if so desired.

From the above description it will be readily apparent to those skilledin the art that members 10. 11, 12 and 13 will not only individually andmutually act to resist all strains of compression, tension and torsionset up in or applied to the structure at any point, but also that by themanner in which these members are joined to the several parts of thestructure, all such strains will be opposed by the various parts of thestructure being brought into coaction by means of these members. Forinstance, should the safe fall in such a way that the inner shell tendsto draw downwardly inside of the outer shell, then, considering thedrawings to show an upper corner of the structure, members 10 and 11will be put under tension and member 12 will be then the upwardlyextending member (12) will be put under tension and the downwardlyextending members (10 and 11) will be put under compression. Thesemembers connect the various outer walls together in a manner exactlysimilar to the members described as being located at the upper corner ofthe structure, and bring the various several parts into coaction toresist downward movement of the inner shell relative to the outer shellas a result of the fall. The various directions of the lines of forcesresulting from strains set up in or applied to the structure may bereadily worked out, and it will be found that no matter where suchforces are set up or applied, the members 10, 11 and 12 will always actto resist such forces and at the same time will act to distribute theforces among the various parts of .the structure in such a way that theparts will be brought into mutual coaction to resist any distortionalefl'ects of said strains. On account of the rigidness of such astructure the tendency of the structure to become distorted by reason ofstanding upon an irregular or slanting floor or base will becounteracted.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and as manyapparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be madewithout departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all mattercontained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawingsshall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitating sense.

What I claim is 1. In a structure of the character described, thecombination with an inner shell having an edge, and an outer shellspaced from the inner shell and having an edge parallel'with said innershell edge, of an elongated bracing leg extending in the direction ofits length from said inner shell edge to said outer shell edge andsecured at one end to said inner shell adjacent its said edge, andsecured at itsvother end to said outer shell adjacent its said edge.

2. In a structure of the character de scribed, the combination with aninner shell having an edge, and an outer shell spaced from the innershell and aving an edge parallel with said inner s ell edge, of anelongated bracing leg extending in the direction of its length and at anacute angle to said shell edges, from said inner shell edge to saidouter shell edge and secured at one'end to said inner shell adjacent itssaid edge, and secured at its other end to said outer shell adjacent itssaid edge.

3. In a structure of the character described, the combination with aninner shell having an edge and a corner, and an outer shell spaced fromthe inner shell and having an edge parallel with said inner shell edgeand a corner, of an elongated bracing leg extending in the direction ofits length from said inner shell edge to said outer shell edge andsecured at one end to said inner shell adjacent its said edge andcorner, and secured at its other end to said outer shell adjacent itssaid edge at a place removed from its said corner.

4. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell, an

outer shell spaced from the inner shell, said shells havingcorresponding parallel edges, and an elongated bracing eg extending inthe direction of its length in a plane passing through said parallelshell edges, said leg being secured at one end to said inner shell, andsecured at its other end to said outer shell, said leg being relativelywide with respect to its thickness and being disposed in the directionof its width at an angle to said plane passing through the shell edges.

5. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell, an outer shell spaced from the inner shell, said shells havingcorresponding parallel edges, and an elongated bracin leg extending inthe direction of its lengt in a plane passing through said parallelshell edges, said leg being secured at one end to said inner shell, andsecured at its other end to said outer shell, said leg being relativelywide with respect to its thickness and being disposed in the directionof its width at an angle to said plane passing through the shell edges,and said leg having transverse curvature in the direction of its width.

6. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having an edge, an outer shell spaced from the inner shell andhaving two walls meeting at an edge, an elongated bracing leg extendingin the direction of its length from one shell to the other and securedat one end to said inner shell adjacent its said edge, the other end ofsaid leg being forked and secured to both said outer shell wallsadjacent its said edge.

7. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having an edge, an outer shell spaced from the inner shell andhaving two walls meeting at an edge, an elongated bracing leg extendingin the directlon of its length from one shell to the other and securedat one end to said inner shell adjacent its said edge, the other end ofsaid leg being forked and having a flange at the end of each fork, theflange at one fork being parallel with and secured to one of said outershell walls, and the flange at the other fork being arallel with andsecured to the other 0 said outer shell walls.

8. In a structure of the character described, the combination with aninner shell having a corner, and an outer shell spaced from the innershell and having two edges, of a tying device secured to both shells,and including a pair of elongated, rigid legs, one extending in thedirection of its length from said inner shell corner to one of saidouter shell edges, and the other leg extending in the direction of itslength from said inner shell corner to the other outer shell edge, fortying said shells together to mu- .tually resist with the strengthinherent to both shells, strains applied to or set up in the structure.

9. In a structure of the character described, the combination with aninner shell having a corner, and an outer shell spaced from the innershell and having two edges meeting at a corner, of a tying devicesecured to both shells, and including a pair of elongated, rigid legs,one extending in the direction of its length from said inner shellcorner to one of said outer shell edges at a point removed from saidcorner, and the other leg extending in the direction of its length fromsaid inner shell corner to the other outer shell edge at a point removedfrom said corner, for tying said shells together to mutually resist withthe strength inherent to both shells, strains applied or set up in thestructure.

10. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having a corner, an outer shell spaced from the inner shell andhaving walls in three difierent planes meeting at a corner correspondingto said inner shell corner, a tying device including three rigid legsarranged in the form of a tripod, said legs at the apex of the tripodbeing secured to said inner shell corner and extending therefrom indifferent directions and secured to said three outer shell walls,whereby the shells are tied together to mutually resist with theircombined inherent strengths, strains applied to or set up in thestructure.

11. In a structure of the character described, incombination, an innershell having a corner, an outer shell spaced from the in-' ner shell andhaving walls in three different planes meeting at a corner correspondingto said inner shell corner, a tying device including three rigid legsarranged in the form of a tripod, said legs at the apex of the tripodbeing secured to said inner shell corner and extending therefrom indifierent directions and secured to said three outer shell walls atplaces spaced from said corner thereof, whereby the shells are tiedtogether to mutually resist with their combined inherent strengths,strains applied to or set up in the structure.

12. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having a corner, an outer shell spaced from the inner shell andhaving walls in three different planes meeting at a corner correspondingto said inner shell corner, a tying device including three rigid legsarranged in the form of a tripod, said legs at the apex of the tripodbeing secured to said inner shell corner and extending therefrom in(llll'el'ent directions and secured to said three outer shell walls atplaces spaced equidistantly from said corner thereof, whereby the shellsare tied together to mutually resist with their combined inherentstrengths, strains applied to or set up in the structure.

13. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having a corner, an outer shell spaced from the inner shell andhaving walls in thr e diilcrent planes meeting at a corner correspondingto said inner shell corner, a tying device including three rigid legsarranged in the form of a tripod, said legs at the apex of the tripodbeing secured to said inner shell corner and extending therefrom indill'erent directions and secured to said three outer shell walls,whereby the shells are tied together to mutually resist with theircombined inherent strengths, strains applied to or set up in thestructure, each of said legs being forked at the outer shell andabutting and sec'ured'to two of said outer shell walls.

14. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having a. corner, an outer shell having three walls mutually atright angles to each other, and means, comprising reenforcing membe'rsextending from the corner of said inner shell and each engaging two ofsaid Walls, for resisting strains set up in or applied to the structureand for bringing said inner shell and outer shell walls into mutualcoaction to resist said strains' 15. In a structure of the characterdescribed, in combination, an inner shell having threeedges meeting at acorner, an outer shell having three walls forming three edges and acorner, reenforcing members attached to said inner shell corner and eachextending outwardly from a different one of said edges to said outershell and each secured to two 01' said outer shell Walls adjacent adifferent edge of said outer shell, at places removed from the cornerthereof.

16. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell having a corner, an outer shell having three walls mutually atright angles to each other, and means, comprising three reenforcingmembers extending from the corner of said inner shell and each engagingtwo of said walls, for resisting strains set up in or applied to thestructure and for bringing said inner shell and outer shell walls intomutual eoaction to resist said strains.

17. In a structure of the character described, in combination, an innershell hav ing three edges meeting at a corner, an outer shell havingthree walls forming three edges and a corner, three reenforcing membersattached to said inner shell corner and each extending outwardly alongthe line of a different one of said edges to said outer shell and eachsecured to two of said outer shell walls adjacent a different edge ofsaid outer shell, at places removed from the corner thereof;

This specification signed this 24; day of May, 1923. 1 1

DAVID H. BELLAMORE.

